Technical Abstract:
Milkweed, Asclepias syriaca, is a new crop being produced for its fiber in pillows and comforts. As the volume of harvested seed and crop trash grows, new uses are sought for the crop to be fully successful economically. Green shoots, pod shell, a mixture of pod shell and trash, and seedmeal were evaluated as possible soil amendment to control Meloidogyne chitwoodi. Nematode infested soil was amended with milkweed plant parts at 0.5 to 4% by weight and bioassayed on tomato for 3 wk. Tomato roots were stained and numbers of infective nematodes were determined. All plant parts significantly (P < 0.5) reduced number of infective M. chitwoodi and injured the bioassay tomato plants. The most potent plant part was pod shell, followed by seedmeal, green shoots and crop trash. Since defatted seadmeal was still active, it seems that the oil in milkweed seed is not responsible for nematode kill.